petorama

Ask Yvette

Last week's column discussed how I choose a pet food. That column resulted in dozens of calls from people who feed Purina brand food. Several of the callers had contacted Purina in Canada and were advised that Canadian products were not affected. Hence, the plethora of calls.

So, I'd like to clarify where things stand, and my personal opinion on the whole situation.

Purina in the United States has voluntarily recalled some of their foods in the United States. Since that time, Sunshine Mills, another company, has issued a voluntary recall. Sunshine Mills manufactures treats under a variety of labels including Ol'Roy.

The list seems to keep growing every day. Pet owners are understandably very frightened.

The Food and Drug Administration has information on their site regarding recalled items. You can look at the list at:
http://www.fda.gov/oc/opacom/hottopics/petfood.html

At this point, I have not found a comprehensive government listing for products made in Canada.

It worries me that this story keeps growing. We hear it's only wet food one day. The next, we hear dry food is affected too. It has been months from the first complaints of sick animals. We do not necessarily know the full scope of the problem. One day we are told things are under control, the next day another recall is issued.

This is why I tend to err on the side of caution. I am a cynic. If there is tainted wheat gluten in the pet food manufacturing chain, then I am not feeding it. That's it. End of story. I'm not venturing outside of my comfort zone until this mess is sorted out.

I do not know what else the F.D.A.'s investigation will reveal. I don't want to take the chance with my animal's health. According to the F.D.A. website, investigations are still ongoing. It is possible that more foods will be added over time.

The Canadian Veterinary Medical Association has a list of media releases that I did find helpful. Their website lists media releases pertaining to the health of animals. This includes other types of recalls not related to the contaminated Wheat Gluten. It's one of the best resources that I've found to date.

http://canadianveterinarians.net/index.aspx


It is so easy for a food supply chain to become contaminated. Even those that make their own food are not immune. Imagine cooking your pet's food, adding some human grade spinach only to find out it is tainted. The risk is always there. But I do wonder why we are not buying Canadian grain. Is it not easier to control the quality that way?

This is a wake up call to a billion dollar industry. People want to know that their pet's food is as safe as it possibly can be.

I am concerned that there may still be contaminated pet food on the shelves. Many mom and pop variety stores buy their food products from grocery stores. They are not retailers. I believe that some flea market vendors also do this. I do not think these smaller retailers would receive the updates from the manufacturer. If you do happen to see a line what was part of the recall in a small shop, take a minute and ask the owner if they know about the recall and have pulled affected products. You could save a companion's life.

Yvette is an award winning pet writer and pet behavior columnist. She also is the author of Meeting Milo, a North American dog bite prevention program to reduce the approximately 2 million children bit by dogs annually. She is the owner of AwesomeDogs.ca and works as a behavior consultant in London, Ontario.

This column was originally featured in The Londoner
See more of Yvette... www.awesomedogs.ca
www.meetingmilo.com

Yvette has 2 dogs of her own, KIKI and KAYA. Take a look...

Previous Questions

• In light of the recent pet food recall by Menu foo...
• Once in a while, something catches my eye that I p...
• The Six Steps Disciplining Your Dog. Often, novic...
• Last week we looked at puppy classes and what you ...
• Dear Yvette, How old should a puppy be to star...
• View All Questions